


Friday

by ClockworkSpades



Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Alternate Universe - Actors, Alternate Universe - Celebrity, Best friends in high school and oh hey it's been 8 years but you're still hot, Coffee Shop, M/M, Reunions, actor!Alfred
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-30
Updated: 2017-12-30
Packaged: 2019-02-23 18:55:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,328
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13196439
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ClockworkSpades/pseuds/ClockworkSpades
Summary: It’s been a long time since high school, a long time since Alfred’s best friend moved back to England and his own career skyrocketed with the help of a few movie deals. The last thing he expected was to see that best friend turn up in a coffee shop in LA again.





	Friday

**Author's Note:**

> This was inspired by the song Hey Leonardo by Blessid Union of Souls. Which I actually only heard because it was on the usuknetwork's weekly jam.

“Alfred?”

The voice was surprised, incredulous even, and despite the low profile he was attempting to keep, Alfred couldn’t help turning around from placing his coffee order to look at the man who had spoken up. And he was glad he did, for his memory hadn’t deceived him in thinking that the accented voice was all too familiar.

“Arthur.” He pulled his sunglasses down a little, just as surprised but soon grinning at the shorter man, who couldn’t help a small smile in reply. “God, it’s been…”

“Eight years.” Arthur filled in for him.

“And you still recognise me from the back.” Alfred laughed, grin easy and teasing as it hadn’t been for a long time. Arthur snorted, and Alfred couldn’t help likening his rolled eyes and unimpressed expression to the countless times he’d done the exact same thing in high school. Though he looked quite different now.

“I didn’t expect you to still wear that stupid jacket. At least it fits you better now.”

Alfred glanced down at himself; the beaten up bomber jacket he’d bought sophomore year that used to drape off his gangly form now neatly hugging his shoulders. He looked up and grinned, almost laughing before he remembered he’d left the barista waiting.

He quickly mumbled an apology as he turned back to the girl; though the place wasn’t busy and she didn’t seem to mind two friends catching up. That or Arthur calling his name had caused her to finally recognise him and Alfred might have soon had to deal with scribbling his autograph on a napkin.

“Hey, uh, what are you having?” He looked to Arthur, who blinked for a moment.

“What? Oh, no, don’t,”

“I insist, come on, just order something I’ll get it.”

Arthur hesitated a moment longer, but sighed and stepped up to Alfred’s side to place his own order. The girl behind the counter smiled and nodded, and a moment or so later they were waiting idly for their drinks to be prepared.

“I’d ask how you are but I get the impression things are going pretty well.” Arthur smiled, something small and easy, and again Alfred was brought back to quiet conversations in classrooms and after school.

He laughed, running a hand through his hair and glancing about. The cafe wasn’t particularly full, but no one was really looking in their direction. By that point other patrons had definitely noticed him, but he was glad for once that no one had really gotten up to bother him.

“You’ve seen the movies, huh?” Somehow, despite the fact that he was well aware that his latest jobs had been million dollar blockbusters, the idea that the scrawny English kid who used to laugh at his clumsy antics in high school had seen them both surprised and excited him.

Again, Arthur looked unimpressed, and again, Alfred only found himself somehow at ease with the expression.

“Alfred I think I saw your face at least three times on billboards or the side of a bus today. Yes, I’ve seen the films.”

Alfred laughed, rubbing the back of his neck in slight embarrassment. If he were more self aware he might’ve known how much he looked like the seventeen year old kid Arthur used to know in that moment, but Arthur was just looking at him with that quietly bemused expression and quirked eyebrow. He looked a lot different. Alfred looked a lot different too; he’d been tall and lanky in highschool, it took a while for puberty to catch up with him and working out in drama school had done a lot for his appearance. But Arthur, Arthur was somehow much the same and so different. He had a different haircut, the lines of his face were sharper, his shoulders broader, but he still had the same wry expressions and dry tone of voice.

He was still really cute, in Alfred’s opinion, but he’d never told Arthur that in high school.

“Right, yeah.” He laughed a little, shrugging. “But you know, they might not have been your thing.”

Arthur snorted, looking like he wanted to shake his head at Alfred.

“We went to see superhero films when we were in school, do you think I’d really avoid them now that the same guy who got excited when Captain America came on screen is now  _playing_ one of those superheroes?”

Alfred’s grin turned sheepish again. He couldn’t explain his embarrassment at Arthur having seen the things. He was certain dozens of others from school had seen them too, but that didn’t make his stomach flip in the same way as thinking of Arthur in the movie theatre did.

“Well I did have to drag you to those movies, if you don’t remember.”

Arthur laughed, properly, not just a snort. It was only a quiet chuckle, a nod of his head with a conceding ‘ _yeah_ ’, but it sounded just the same as when they were younger. No, not quite the same, Alfred noticed. It was deeper, richer. But it still made him smile.

Their drinks arrived on the counter, and it hit Alfred rather suddenly that their little meeting might have ended just like that, Arthur disappearing out of the door never to be seen again like the end of their last summer.

“Hey, uh,” He grabbed his coffee, glancing at his watch and then Arthur again. “I have a meeting thing to go to in like half an hour but I’ve got time, do you have somewhere to be or…?” He let his question trail off, watching Arthur pick up his own cup.

“No I don’t actually.”

“Oh, cool.” Alfred nodded, trying not to smile too wide, but Arthur looked rather content to be catching up too so he didn’t mind too much.

He didn’t need to ask for Arthur to follow him to a table; a little booth in the corner of the cafe. The cafe was small, so it was impossible to hide, but it felt like the corner seat provided them a little shelter from prying eyes.

“So what are you doing back in LA? I thought you moved back to England.” Alfred took the lid off his coffee, letting it cool a little.

“I did.” Arthur nodded, small smile still in place at the corner of his lip. “But I sort of missed it here. I did my degree and my teacher training and taught for a few years in a couple of different schools,”

“You’re a teacher then?” Arthur had wanted to be a teacher, Alfred remembered. Or at least, he was interested in teaching.

“Oh, yes, I should’ve started with that.” A smile pulled at the corner of Arthur’s mouth as he took a breath. “But, uh, yes, I did all of that in England and I just sort of missed being in America. I wasn’t really thinking seriously about it all but I saw a job opening and I just,” He shrugged, laughing a little. “It was a bit stupid of me to be so reckless. But it turned out. I’ve been here for a year now, I started last September.”

Alfred nodded, curious and eager to hear every bit of it.

“So you’ve been back in LA for a whole year and you never bothered to try and call me?” He took a sip of his coffee, smirking at Arthur over the rim of his cup as the man spluttered.

“It had been seven years, Alfred!” Arthur stared at him. “Besides, you’re mister blockbuster movie star now, why on earth would you want to hear from the English guy you were friends with for two years?”

“Hey,  _best_ friends.” Alfred corrected sternly, but they were both smiling and staring at one another and they couldn’t help laughing again.

“Alright,  _best_ friends.” Arthur corrected, swallowing another couple of chuckles. “But still. I don’t have your number anymore, and even if I did I’d have to think you’re either too busy or wouldn’t really want to catch up.”

Alfred’s expression turned bittersweet. He couldn’t blame Arthur for thinking as much of course; admittedly he  _was_ busy most of the time, and if the situation were reversed he might well have thought the same thing. But still, the idea Arthur had been so close for an entire year and he’d had no idea upset him just a little.

“Makes me sad you think I wouldn’t want to see you.” He took another sip of his coffee, and Arthur shrugged. “It always bothered me that we stopped talking after high school.”

Arthur sighed, the same bittersweet expression crossing his face as he looked at his own cup.

“Well…Life happens, unfortunately. And the time difference is rather unforgiving.” He picked up his cup and Alfred hummed his agreement as Arthur took a drink of whatever it was he’d ordered.

It was quiet for a moment, just the sounds of the cafe and other conversations and their eyes meeting a few too many times. Alfred couldn’t help thinking it was nice.

“You know,” He leaned back, easy grin returning as he looked at Arthur. “I kind of had a giant crush on you in highschool.”

Arthur’s eyes went wide, a faint pinkness dusting across his cheeks and Alfred had to pick up his coffee to stop himself from laughing out of embarrassment.

“Oh.” Arthur said, eyes flickering back and forth as if he was thinking, and the blush on his face only reddened. He put his arm on the table, letting his head fall into the hand for a moment with evident embarrassment. “You should’ve said something.” He eventually said, and Alfred only shrugged.

“I wanted to. But you know, you were going to England and stuff. We were only kids.”

Arthur nodded as if he were conceding, but he peeked up at Alfred from between his fingers, and a flicker of a smile danced on his lips before he straightened up.

“Yes, well. We could’ve had a good year or so. I uhm, I had quite the crush on you too.”

Alfred blinked, his turn to stare at Arthur with wide eyes. But he wasn’t so embarrassed, not so much as he found it laughably stupid. They would have been stupid teenagers, wouldn’t they? Utterly unaware of one another’s feelings and letting everything go unsaid. It was just a crush really, it never went anywhere serious and then they lost touch after high school. But still, he had to shake his head.

“Wow. I guess I should’ve said something then.”

Arthur chuckled a little, and Alfred found himself smiling wider. Arthur didn’t look as if he agreed or disagreed, but he nodded and picked up his drink. Alfred let him take a sip, gaze lowering to the table.

It was nice, to just talk like this. Alfred couldn’t remember the last time he’d had an easy conversation with someone who wasn’t one of his co-stars, let alone in such a public place. Not that he didn’t enjoy his life, he was thankful for it all. But if ever he spoke to someone else that didn’t already know him it seemed so canned, so fake. All the smiles and gushing, it just seemed like the same generic conversation over and over again. Even the nicest fans were still preoccupied with what he’d done and who he was and not the guy just trying to talk to them. It was tiring.

But Arthur still looked at him like he was the stupid, gangly teenager who dragged him to the cinema and ate McDonalds with him at 1am.

“Hey, uh.” He leaned forward again, resting his forearms on the table and trying not to look so much of the nervous teenager he suddenly felt despite the fact he was well into his twenties. But leaning forward gave him a glance at his watch, and he cursed under his breath as he realised he was rapidly running out of time for this idle chat. He glanced up, Arthur was frowning, confused. “Sorry, I have to go in like a minute.” Arthur nodded, his expression tinged with something Alfred felt bold enough to call disappointment. “That- That isn’t what I wanted to say. God, I feel like some dumb kid.” He sighed, running a hand through his hair and letting a bubble of nervous laughter escape.

“That’s alright, I only ever knew you as a dumb kid.” Arthur cut in, wry smirk back in place. Alfred tried to glare at him, but it was cut in with laughter, and the twinkle in Arthur’s eye made it impossible to look so harsh. “What were you going to say then? Before you remembered you have places to be.”

Alfred parted his lips, closing them again to wet with the tip of his tongue. “I was just thinking if…Are you free tonight?” Arthur blinked, about to respond, but Alfred rambled on. “Or any other night. I just thought maybe you might like to get dinner?”

Arthur paused, that wry smirk softening into something else.

“…I’d like that. How’s Friday?”

“Friday is good.” Alfred smiled. Not his grin, not that bright sunny showstopping grin he turned on for the press and interviews and fans. Just a warm smile, directed only at Arthur and the soft smile he received in return.

“Well give me your phone or something, you can’t take me to dinner if you can’t talk to me.” Arthur sat up straighter, trying to seem unbothered and easy, but Alfred could see the bashfulness hiding under his expression.

He pulled out his phone, unlocking it and sliding it over for Arthur to punch the number in. He glanced at his watch as Arthur typed, realising with some pain that he really had to go. He stood as Arthur handed it back, pulling out his sunglasses again and smiling down at Arthur.

“…See you Friday then.”

“Friday.”

Arthur nodded, and Alfred tried not to smile too wide as he made his way out of the cafe.


End file.
